The three goals - Climate Action 100+
The three goals | Climate Action 100+
As institutional investors and consistent with their fiduciary duty to their beneficiaries, seeking to address the material financial risks and opportunities of climate change, investors will work with the companies in which we invest to encourage them to work towards the global goal of halving GHG emissions by 2030 and delivering net zero GHG emissions by 2050, in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement to pursue efforts to limit warming to 1.5oC. They will do this by asking Climate Action 100+ focus companies to:
Implement a strong governance framework which clearly articulates the board’s accountability and oversight of climate change risk; Take action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain, including engagement with stakeholders such as policymakers and other actors to address the sectoral barriers to transition. This should be consistent with the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global average temperature increase to well below 2OC above pre-industrial levels, aiming for 1.5oC. Notably, this implies the need to move towards net-zero emissions by 2050 or sooner; and Provide enhanced corporate disclosure and implement transition plans to deliver on robust targets. This should be in line with the final recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and other relevant sector and regional guidance, to enable investors to assess the robustness of companies’ business plans and improve investment decision-making.
Climate Action 100+ will seek to support these efforts using frameworks and tools such as the Net Zero Company Benchmark, recognising that the pathway for an orderly transition varies across regions and sectors.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”